looks like a new crop of freeze busted I/Os being grown

[Scott Danforth]

forecast for Texas


Northern Florida


Memphis TN


Whole US

 

[ezbtr]

yup, Round Rock Texas borders my town

 

[harringtondav]

There is still time to winterize, but not much.
Add the time to learn how to do it, and there's less time.

 

[Lou C]

The main thing to learn is simply drain & poke!

 

[harringtondav]

Many Texans own boats. All Texans have water supply lines to their homes, and these lines aren't buried 42" deep like up north.
..Marine shops and plumbers will have a hay day.

 

[KJM]

Many Texans own boats. All Texans have water supply lines to their homes, and these lines aren't buried 42" deep like up north.
..Marine shops and plumbers will have a hay day.

How deep are water pipes buried down your way?

 

[harringtondav]

How deep are water pipes buried down your way?

Main home is in Cedar Falls IA, river house is south of Dubuque IA.
Pipes are at least 42" deep. The heavy snow cover helps keep the ground frost level higher. River house plumbing is now bone dry empty, but the well pump check valve keeps the outside supply line full. Rubber supply pipe can take a freeze.
But in very cold times <-20, especially with no snow cover, pipes can still freeze. ....rule of thumb is to check the cold water temp. If below 40 deg, crack a tap and let it dribble.
Building code also requires footings at least 42" deep. Else the ground frost could heave a foundation.

 

[Lou C]

Here I’m not sure what the code is but our coldest temp is like about zero however that’s rare because our proximity to Long Island Sound moderates the temps. Did have a freeze up once in an upstairs bedroom but I fixed that myself by correcting poorly done insulation.
Sadly a lot of people will find out why all inboards should be closed cooled! The Achilles heel is those hard to get at block drains. The manifolds & hoses are easy to drain but the block drains are the worst. That and the fact that raw water cooled blocks accumulate rust particles and sand which can prevent full draining even if you poke the holes. Closed cooling even just a half system eliminates those problems.

 

[harringtondav]

Sadly a lot of people will find out why all inboards should be closed cooled! The Achilles heel is those hard to get at block drains.

Our current VP powered 4.3L I/O is 'half' closed. That's why I chose the VP over Merc 4.5L. Simpler winterization.
But it still requires a raw side flush with the pink juice. The VP single point drain appears to be completely drain the raw side. Follow with a two gallon antifreeze flush, final drain, and good to sleep over the winter.